Comments on: Fox Soccer Channel Almost Beats ESPN2 In TV Ratings http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478 Daily News & Analysis of the English Premier League Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:46:46 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: The Gaffer http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-65142 The Gaffer Mon, 10 Aug 2009 01:12:57 +0000 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-65142 John, not sure about Canada. I hope to get more details later this week. Stay tuned to EPL Talk for more details. Cheers, The Gaffer John, not sure about Canada. I hope to get more details later this week. Stay tuned to EPL Talk for more details.

Cheers,
The Gaffer

]]> By: John mc http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-65013 John mc Sun, 09 Aug 2009 11:48:14 +0000 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-65013 Now that ESPN2 has won the EPL rights from Setanta. What will that do for the many soccer fans in Canada. Will we be able to watch ESPN2????? Now that ESPN2 has won the EPL rights from Setanta. What will that do for the many soccer fans in Canada. Will we be able to watch ESPN2?????

]]> By: footballer http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-31979 footballer Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:49:06 +0000 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-31979 If they rebrand it as Fox Football Channel, I will order it. If they rebrand it as Fox Football Channel, I will order it.

]]> By: JMC http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-29466 JMC Tue, 25 Nov 2008 19:03:07 +0000 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-29466 Ummm... that's a 0.0 coverage area rating for the Liverpool - Man City game. 244k viewers is about 94k households - at 30MM households, that's a 0.003 rating.<br><br>The Euro Final was 2.4 million households, not viewers. Same with MLS on ESPN 2 -- that's 261k households, not viewers. Ummm… that's a 0.0 coverage area rating for the Liverpool – Man City game. 244k viewers is about 94k households – at 30MM households, that's a 0.003 rating.

The Euro Final was 2.4 million households, not viewers. Same with MLS on ESPN 2 — that's 261k households, not viewers.

]]> By: acraft23 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-27315 acraft23 Sat, 25 Oct 2008 12:03:40 +0000 http://www.epltalk.com/fox-soccer-channel-almost-beats-espn2-in-tv-ratings/3478#comment-27315 FSC's unexpected ratings add to an ever growing set of evidence which includes the 3.1 rating (2.4 million viewers) ABC achieved for the Euro 2008 final & the .8 rating (1.097 million viewers) ESPN achieved for the Champions League final last year. I believe the inevitable conclusion to be drawn from this data trend centers around the quality of the players & competition. Simply put, it's not that soccer viewership struggles inherently because its, well, soccer in the U.S. Rather, ratings sulk because a simply inferior product is being presented. American viewers as a whole lack the fervor of European viewers in regards to the game. However, the individuals constituting the U.S. soccer viewership are much more discerning than previously given credit for by the television networks.<br><br>As evidence, look no further than the average daily coverage on FSC or when ESPN airs games. The coverage & choice of programming often resembles a soccer conglomerate since until more recently, I believe U.S. broadcasters considered largely any soccer programming to have intrinsically equal entertainment value (outside of World Cup). In some ways, I attribute their lack of target viewer understanding to soccer's lower stature amongst American sports viewers. That not withstanding, it likely also stems from an American sports broadcast approach wherein simply airing any football (NFL, college, etc.) attracts viewers while remaining a relatively homogeneous product across all levels in terms of entertainment value.<br><br> As evidenced by the Euro 2008 coverage, ESPN has taken notice of soccer's U.S. television viability hinging upon the quality of the on-field product rather than it's simple availablity. Perhaps being shown up by FSC is precisly the remedy or even, hopefully, the final straw needed to complete the transformation of U.S. broadcasters soccer programming choices. When contemplating this realigned broadcast approach & a possible U.S. EPL contract, I tend to disagree with those suggesting MLS is doomed or will suffer greatly. Granted, the first step in maintaining MLS's growth when the EPL does gain a foothold, is for the league to embrace their status rather than attempt to out run it. It can be viewed in much the same terms as Minor League Baseball, and while I would love nothing more than to have a top-flite domestic soccer league now, I think MLS will flourish as a bi-product of growing EPL popularity. Major League Baseball is more successful than ever & subsequently, Minor League Baseball has seen comperable & corralating success. Building this success on the back of the EPL will eventually lead to MLS becoming the quality we all desire, because as the EPL's U.S. popularity grows, American demand for a similar product domestically will rise & eventually be met by MLS. FSC's unexpected ratings add to an ever growing set of evidence which includes the 3.1 rating (2.4 million viewers) ABC achieved for the Euro 2008 final & the .8 rating (1.097 million viewers) ESPN achieved for the Champions League final last year. I believe the inevitable conclusion to be drawn from this data trend centers around the quality of the players & competition. Simply put, it's not that soccer viewership struggles inherently because its, well, soccer in the U.S. Rather, ratings sulk because a simply inferior product is being presented. American viewers as a whole lack the fervor of European viewers in regards to the game. However, the individuals constituting the U.S. soccer viewership are much more discerning than previously given credit for by the television networks.

As evidence, look no further than the average daily coverage on FSC or when ESPN airs games. The coverage & choice of programming often resembles a soccer conglomerate since until more recently, I believe U.S. broadcasters considered largely any soccer programming to have intrinsically equal entertainment value (outside of World Cup). In some ways, I attribute their lack of target viewer understanding to soccer's lower stature amongst American sports viewers. That not withstanding, it likely also stems from an American sports broadcast approach wherein simply airing any football (NFL, college, etc.) attracts viewers while remaining a relatively homogeneous product across all levels in terms of entertainment value.

As evidenced by the Euro 2008 coverage, ESPN has taken notice of soccer's U.S. television viability hinging upon the quality of the on-field product rather than it's simple availablity. Perhaps being shown up by FSC is precisly the remedy or even, hopefully, the final straw needed to complete the transformation of U.S. broadcasters soccer programming choices. When contemplating this realigned broadcast approach & a possible U.S. EPL contract, I tend to disagree with those suggesting MLS is doomed or will suffer greatly. Granted, the first step in maintaining MLS's growth when the EPL does gain a foothold, is for the league to embrace their status rather than attempt to out run it. It can be viewed in much the same terms as Minor League Baseball, and while I would love nothing more than to have a top-flite domestic soccer league now, I think MLS will flourish as a bi-product of growing EPL popularity. Major League Baseball is more successful than ever & subsequently, Minor League Baseball has seen comperable & corralating success. Building this success on the back of the EPL will eventually lead to MLS becoming the quality we all desire, because as the EPL's U.S. popularity grows, American demand for a similar product domestically will rise & eventually be met by MLS.

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